Intermissions
by candyflavordlies
Summary: Kagome has an obsession.


She was almost there. All she had to do was reach up and...

"What the hell are you doing?" Kagome's hand froze just above Inuyasha's twitching ear.

"Eh?" He was supposed to be sleeping! How was she going to explain this? And without waking the others. Sango was a light sleeper and if his voice got any louder, she'd wake up, then so would Miroku and Shippo and she'd die of complete embarrassment. Why couldn't he just _pretend_ he didn't know she was there?

Inuyasha's eyes squinted. Why was she blushing? Slowly, his eyes followed the length of her arm, his gaze ending just above...

"It's just that they're so," She paused as she dropped her hand, "They're _cute_!"

The growl coming from the hanyou suggested that he didn't agree.

"I thought you were over this!"

"Shhh!" She glanced around nervously.

"Why? Scared the others will know you're as much of a pervert as Miroku?"

"I am _not_ a pervert! It's your ear for the gods sake! It's not like I'm groping anything, you know, sexual." In the firelight, Kagome's face glowed brightly. Inuyasha raised one dark eyebrow.

She wished the earth would swallow her whole. The young miko wouldn't be surprised if the rest of their companions knew about this by morning.

"If I let you do it, will you quit naggin' me?" The look of pure awe on Kagome's face was enough to turn his lips up in a smirk. She nodded happily.

"I won't sit you for a whole day."

"Two." She seemed torn for a moment before a smile spread across her face.

"Hai." Her small pale hand began its journey again before it was cut short.

Inuyasha's clawed hand wrapped gently around her slender wrist.

"Not here. I'll never hear the end of it if those two wake up." His eyes slid to the sleeping monk and kitsune.

If he didn't know any better, he'd swear that he saw Kagome's face sadden. Her hand dropped limply into her lap, taking his with it.

"I guess I could do it tomorrow."

"Keh! You already woke me up. Come on." He tugged her up effortlessly.

"Where are we going?" She asked even as she climbed onto his offered back.

"Some place else." 

Inuyasha's pace was brisk but he didn't bother to run. The river was in walking distance, even for the humans of the group. Kagome didn't have shoes though, and she had something against walking barefoot in the forest. He never liked those shoe things everyone wore. How the hell was a person supposed to run with those things? 

The river shone with the reflections of the night sky. It was bright and calmly flowed against the rocks lining the creek. Kagome slid away from the warmth of the fire rat fur and took a step towards the soothing water. She winced a little before quickly covering it up. She was thankful she'd gotten a ride all the way to the river, but the ground here was full of sharp gravel and the earth beneath her feet wasn't particularly warm in the middle of the night.

She made her way to the flattest boulder with enough space for the both of them. It was nights like these she wished her clothes were thicker or longer or _something_, so that she didn't freeze the minute she stepped out of her sleeping bag. A shiver ran through her as she wrapped her arms around her bent knees. She rested her chin in her palms as she waited for him to come to her.

It didn't take long. In the minute it'd taken Kagome to situate herself, Inuyasha had shed his coat. He draped it over shoulders before hopping up beside her.

"Arigato." She didn't get a response. Didn't really expect one. The young hanyou was still learning the intricacies of socializing and 'please, thank you, and you're welcome' were purposely on the bottom of his list.

They sat quietly and listened to the water flow over the rocks. Listened to the creatures moving in the night. Listened to the wind blow through the forest.

"Can I?" She whispered, glancing up at the inviting white appendages.

Inuyasha turned his head away, instead looking upstream.

"Only if you promise not to tell the others." Tell them what, she didn't know.

"Ok." But promise, she did.

He turned back to her, his cheeks a furious red as he bent down ever so slightly to grant her access. Her hand reached up hesitantly.

They were soft, softer than she remembered, and flexible. Nothing like the human cartilage she was used to. Nothing like Buyo's either. They were a contradiction, standing tall, supporting themselves atop the inu-youkai's head despite the lack of bones or hardened tissue. Able to twitch and rotate independently, yet hear and decipher coherently. She ran her finger along the fine hairs lining the edges, dragged a finger down the outer arch. They were warm and mesmerizing.

And they were trembling.

Or he was trembling.

_Was that a whine?_

Her hand stopped but she didn't pull away.

Now that she wasn't so entranced by her task, she noticed the changes. His back was bent, not rigid like before. And although he'd adjusted to let her feel them, his head was almost level with her knees and his ear was nestled in the palm of her hand.

"Inuyasha?" The little noises from him stopped, replaced by the beginnings of a growl. Experimentally, Kagome slid her finger down to scratch behind his ear.

The sound changed abruptly, a mix between a purr and a whine.

The kind of sound a girl her age could fall in love with.

"Don't do that." Kagome would have obliged if it had sounded anything like he meant it. But even as the words left his mouth, Inuyasha's head was nudging her hand to continue. She didn't think he even knew he was doing it.

She giggled. "Why not? I think it's kinda cute." There was that damn word again. He wanted to be offended, but his body was warm and fuzzy and there was a feeling in the pit of his stomach, one that hadn't been there when his mother used to do it, but one he liked all the same.

"I ain't _cute_." Somehow, he managed to make the word sound like an insult.

"Yes you are. My big bad hanyou has a soft side."

"Keh! Whatever." Kagome smiled. The longer she scratched, the more he leaned into her touch. She couldn't blame him, it wasn't often he allowed himself human contact. He was still getting used to the few times she'd grabbed his hand, or hugged him. Even when she was tending to his injuries, there was always a moment when he'd tense up, just before her hand touched his skin.

The more she thought about it, the more she wanted to pull him to her, but knowing him like she did, he'd probably close up and disappear into the forest.

But the very last thought on Inuyasha's mind was leaving. He wasn't going to admit it to her, it was embarrassing enough, but he never wanted her to stop.

When he was younger, his mother used to do it all the time. Usually after the village kids had thrown rocks at him, or when they'd shouted things about his dirty parentage and the 'whore' he called mom. He wasn't strong back then, needed comfort after everything was said and done. His mother never berated him. She never, _never_ told him to go away, that there was anything wrong with feeling hurt. That there was anything wrong with _feeling_. In fact, she encouraged it. She was always hugging him and kissing him and tugging gently on his ears. When Inuyasha was younger, she even wrestled with him and gracefully accepted his need to chew everything in sight when he was teething. And when it was time for bed, he'd curl up next to her and lay his head on her chest, listening to the beating of her heart. Her hands, small like Kagome's, would wrap around his ear and stroke it gently. Sometimes she'd sing or talk and sometimes she'd say nothing at all.

He could almost pretend that he was back in her arms listening to the calm of her breath after sleep.

But there were differences. Not bad. Just different. Things he had to memorize and separate or he'd lose the distinct memories of both.

Kagome was shorter, smaller than his mother. And she smelled different, like flowers and crisp water. Her hands were gently insistent, like she was trying to tell him something. And her heartbeat...everybody's heartbeat was unique. He knew that. Humans thought that their hearts all make the same _thump, thump_ against their ribcage but it never sounded exactly like someone else's. Kagome's was strong and calm, so similar to his mother's that he had to listen closely for the pattern.

The biggest difference, though, wasn't in her.

It was in the way he felt.

His mother had always made him feel safe, even with the knowledge that the whole village wanted him dead. Kagome did that and more. The warm comfort he was familiar with was laced with something else. Something that made his stomach flip and his face blush. Something that made selective parts of his body twitch and his senses flare. 

It took him a moment to grasp the change in his position and by then it was too late. His forehead rested on her knees and at that distance, she was the only thing filling his mind. He could smell her underneath the fragrant soaps she used, under his fire rat coat. He could feel the warmth of her skin through her clothes. Inuyasha took a deep breath, and then another. He tried his best to fill his lungs with her but it seemed to escape every time he breathed out.

He wondered belatedly if Kagome noticed him sniffing her.

If she did, she didn't seem to mind. She was still touching him and he wasn't face down in the river and that was all that mattered to him.

"Inuyasha?" His free ear swiveled towards her. His face was redder than his clothing and he knew even her human eyes would see it if he looked up. "We should be getting back."

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Inuyasha knew he should try to salvage his dignity. Jump up, act like a jerk, and then take her back to camp. But his mind sounded very far away and his body was in charge now. And it demanded to stay right where it was.

Kagome's fingers slid from his ear and into his hair. They glided across his scalp for a few minutes and she smiled. It seemed if she kept it up, he was going to turn into a giant marshmallow. Not that she was particularly against that. It was nice to know that he wasn't a moron all the time. It was even better knowing that he actually _liked_ being touched by her. Even if he never let her touch those soft little ears again, Kagome had an experience that would stay with her forever. Not to mention great blackmail material.

Kagome stifled a yawn.

Inuyasha sighed.

"Let's go." 

The walk back to the campsite was quiet. She'd climbed on his back after he'd slid off the boulder. He wouldn't make eye contact with her and she knew he was uncomfortable.

For that reason alone, she refrained from touching his ears.

But it was a hard task and now she knew what Miroku felt like trying not to grope Sango all the time.

The fire was waning when they returned. Kagome could barely see her hand in front of her face let alone get more firewood, so Inuyasha set her down at the foot of her sleeping bag and put the wood on the fire. As he stoked it, Kagome snuggled back into the warmth and comfort of the cotton and down material. Across the circle, she could see Kirara's bright eyes watching them lazily.

Inuyasha's mind was racing three thousand miles a minute. It was embarrassing, falling like a damn pup into her hands. And sniffing her! But despite that, he couldn't completely convince himself that he shouldn't have done it. Truth be told, he wanted to do it again. And _that_ was the problem. Without seeming desperate, how was he going to get her to do it again? And knowing his lack of fine verbal skills, what was he supposed to say that wouldn't ruin the moment, ruin any chance of a repeat _and_ wouldn't get him sat?

The fire was burning brightly and his time to establish a plan was up. He could do this. Just needed to say something that he wouldn't usually say in an uncomfortable situation.

He stood slowly, his back straight and his shoulders set.

His ear twitched nervously.

Kagome giggled.

"Somethin' funny?" His low voice didn't even sound mildly threatening.

"You." Kagome patted the ground behind her. She always set up her sleeping bag near a tree, usually the one he was sleeping in. He eyed the spot between the roots.

With his arms carefully hidden his sleeves, Inuyasha edged his way around the bedding and sat himself against the rough bark. He removed Tessaiga and laid it across his lap.

He made a point of not looking at her, instead letting his eyes stray between the flames and Kirara's mocking eyes.

"I'm sorry if it made you uncomfortable."

"Keh!" He peered down at her. He tried his best to keep the scowl off of his face.

"So, I can do it anytime I want then?"

"Ain't gonna happen."

"But you just said..."

"Ain't. Gonna. Happen." He glared menacingly.

"How about when everyone's sleeping?" Kagome's eyes pleaded with him.

"You're crazy." She knew she'd regret it later but this was her last chance.

"I won't sit you the next time Kouga shows up." Inuyasha's ears perked up. He was quiet for a moment as he looked her over.

"If you stopped bein' all friendly with him, you wouldn't have to sit me."

"Well, I'm not going to be mean to him if that's what you're asking. I think you starting a fight with him all the time is enough." Kagome's voice rose a little and the hanyou glanced frantically towards the other youkai of the group. Kirara was still watching them but Shippo didn't move an inch.

Inuyasha leaned forward. "Stop giving me a reason to fight all the time." The young miko ducked her head.

"So you want me to stop talking to him?" When Inuyasha's eyes seemed to light up, Kagome shook her head. "That's not an option."

"Fine. Then you can't give him anything." At her perplexed and slightly irritated look, he continued. "You can't give him any Ramen, and none of our potato chips. And definitely no touching. None of that hugging crap."

"That's not fair." He shrugged.

"It's your choice." He thought he was being pretty fair. She shouldn't be sharing any of their stuff with him anyway. He could have that fried egg stuff anytime but the Ramen and the chips were off limits. And so was Kagome. Any male youkai would've killed that damn wolf bastard a long time ago but he'd come out looking like the bad guy so, he'd just let the shithead live a little longer. At least until Kagome stopped tolerating him.

Silence fell between them.

"I can't just stop being nice to Kouga. But..." Inuyasha began to object. "But! I won't give him any of your food."

"And..." Kagome sighed. He was like an eager kid leaning closer and closer, boring his eyes into hers.

"And I'll try to cut back on the touching and stuff. But only if you promise to not make a big deal out of it. No teasing and no fighting. I know what you're thinking. I won't sit you if you promise not to fight. Oh, and I can, ya know," She pointed to his little white ears, "whenever I want. When no one's around." He doesn't know how long that no teasing thing was going to last but he could at least try.

"Deal."

"Deal."

Inuyasha sat back, tension seeping out of him as he leaned against the tree trunk. His heart was still drumming heavily in his chest. His eyes scanned the perimeter of the camp. He listened closely to rustling in a bush off to his left. Only a rabbit, nothing to worry about.

It was the disembodied giggling that worried him. He stared down at Kagome's figure, her back to him as her shoulders shook. Her sleeping bag was pulled up to her chin and he can't see her face.

"You're out of your mind."

"You're still cute. Goodnight Inuyasha."

"I ain't cute." He muttered, but he doubted she heard him. Her breath was already beginning to even out. "Goodnight Kagome."

He looked away from her to the cat demon across the fire. Maybe it was the flicker from the fire but it looked suspiciously like she was smiling. Suddenly, Inuyasha was inexplicably happy that she couldn't speak.


End file.
